KQ 

31 

v* 


f 

sO 

o 
o 


SEX   ATTRACTION 

A  LECTURE  GIVEN  AT  THE  MICHIGAN  STATE 
NORMAL  SCHOOL,  JULY,  1919. 


BY 

VICTOR  C.  VAUGHAN,  M.D.,  LL.D., 

Professor   of   Hygiene    and    Physiological    Chemistry,    and 

Dean  of  the  University  of  Michigan  Medical 

School,  Ann  Arbor,  Michigan. 


ST.  LOUIS 

C.  V.  MOSBY  COMPANY 
1920 


H9-3 


COPYRIGHT,  1920,  BY  C.  V.  MOSBY  COMPANY 
(All  Rights  Reserved) 


Press  of 

C.  V.  Mosby  Company 
St.  L,ouis 


PREFACE 

This  booklet  consists  of  a  lecture, 
first  given  to  the  teachers  in  the  public 
schools  in  Michigan  and  later  repeated 
at  a  summer  session  of  the  Michigan 
State  Normal  School.  It  is  not  a 
brochure  on  venereal  diseases.  It  is 
an  attempt  to  state  in  a  broad  way 
the  physiologic  relation  between  the 
sexes. 

For  some  years  past  the  author  has 
given  a  course  of  three  lectures  to  the 
women  students  in  the  University  of 
Michigan.  He  believes  that  there  are 
certain  fundamental  principles  con- 
nected with  the  sex  problem  which  all 
should  understand.  Consequently,  he 
has  attempted  to  treat  this  matter  in 
a  broad,  scientific  way,  without  going 
into  details.  The  influence  of  sex 
touches  our  lives  at  every  point  in  the 
reproductive  period,  and  all  intelli- 
gent people  should  understand  and 
appreciate  its  nature  and  force. 

437182 


SEX  ATTRACTION 

In  many  of  the  lower  forms  of  life 
there  is  no  sex.  The  bacillus  elongates, 
divides  transversely,  and  two  individ- 
uals come  from  one.  Which  is  the 
parent  and  which  is  offspring  ?  There 
is  no  such  thing  as  parenthood  and  no 
such  relationship  as  father,  mother, 
son  or  daughter.  The  unicellular  or- 
ganism is  potentially  immortal,  and 
given  suitable  conditions  it  might  con- 
tinue to  multiply  by  fission  indefinitely 
and  eternally.  As  multicellular  organ- 
isms develop,  differentiation  in  struc- 
ture and  function  begins.  Certain 
cells  are  set  apart  to  perform  certain 
definite  functions  which  are  essential 
to  the  welfare  of  the  whole.  In  the 
unicellular  organism,  all  the  functions 
of  life  are  executed  by  the  one  cell. 
It  feeds,  absorbs,  assimilates  and  elim- 
inates. It  maintains  itself  and  pro- 
7 


8  Sex  Attraction 

creates  for  the  future.  Evidently  such 
forms  of  life  are  capable  of  only  a 
limited  development.  The  higher  mul- 
ticellular  organism  is  limited  in  its  de- 
velopment only  by  the  extent  to  which 
differentiation  in  structure  and  func- 
tion can  go.  This  determines  the  pos- 
sible evolution  of  the  species.  As  the 
scale  of  existence  rises,  differentiation 
becomes  more  complex  and  the  limits 
beyond  which  evolution  can  not  go  are 
extended.  In  this  way  sex  has  been 
developed.  Eeproductive  organs  are 
developed,  and  the  extent  to  which 
this  is  done  determines  the  position 
of  the  species  in  the  scale  of  existence. 
At  one  point  in  the  evolution  of  life 
the  male  and  female  reproductive  or- 
gans are  found  in  the  same  individual. 
Evidently  the  evolution  of  a  species 
provided  with  this  form  of  reproduc- 
tion is  limited,  consequently  differ- 
entiation proceeds  and  results  in  the 
production  of  male  and  female.  Cer- 


Sex  Attraction  9 

tain  individuals  become  responsible 
for  only  the  male  elements  essential  to 
procreation,  while  other  individuals 
are  assigned  the  task  of  supplying  the 
female  elements.  Thus,  it  happens 
that  in  the  higher  plants  and  animals 
there  are  males  and  females ;  and  the 
most  perfect  product  of  evolution,  the 
genus  homo,  consists  of  man  and  wo- 
man. In  this  genus  there  is  the  most 
perfect  development  of  the  sex  func- 
tion. In  no  other  species  is  the  exer- 
cise of  the  sex  functions  so  completely 
under  the  control  of  the  individuals 
who  possess  it.  In  plant  fertilization 
it  is  dependent  wholly  upon  the  sea- 
son. Even  in  the  higher  animals  sex- 
ual desire  lies  dormant  the  greater 
part  of  the  time,  and  asserts  itself 
only  as  a  cyclic  physiologic  process. 
Furthermore,  there  are  some  good 
reasons  for  believing  that  this  holds 
good  to  some  extent  among  primitive 
peoples.  It  seems  that  the  sexual  ap- 


10  Sex  Attraction 

petite  has  grown  with  the  evolution 
of  the  race.  It  has  been  stated  by  cer- 
tain travelers  among  primitive  peo- 
ples that  lapses  from  chastity  among 
their  women  are  less  common  than 
among  us.  I  do  not  vouch  for  the 
truth  of  these  statements,  neither  am 
I  in  a  position  to  deny  them.  It  cer- 
tainly is  true  that  in  no  other  species 
is  the  reproductive  act  so  under  the 
control  of  those  who  participate  in  it 
as  in  the  case  of  man.  To  some  this 
may  seem  an  unpleasant  and  even  a 
terrifying  statement,  but  I  think  when 
properly  understood,  it  is  a  most  cher- 
ishing and  hopeful  condition.  It 
places  the  responsibility  where  it  be- 
longs. It  makes  the  parent  responsi- 
ble for  the  child.  In  this  lies  the  pos- 
sibility of  the  unlimited  improvement 
of  the  race.  It  clothes  parenthood 
with  a  sacred  obligation  which  no  man 
or  woman  worthy  to  assume  this  func- 
tion can  ignore.  It  shows  that  the 


Sex  Attraction  11 

creature,  man,  has  been  raised  by  the 
process  of  evolution  until  he  has  be- 
come a  coworker  with  the  Creator  in 
the  uplift  of  the  race,  and  that  the 
future  of  our  kind  is  largely  within 
man's  power  to  make  or  to  mar,  to 
illume  or  to  darken,  to  fill  with  the 
joy  of  life  or  with  the  regret  of  having 
been  born. 

I  wish  to  recall  a  statement  I  made 
concerning  the  unicellular  organism 
that  multiplies  by  fission.  I  stated 
this  organism  is  potentially  immortal. 
The  same  is  true  of  man.  The  dif- 
ference between  the  two  is  not  so 
great  as  at  first  seems.  Man  consists 
of  two  kinds  of  cells,  the  somatic  and 
the  reproductive.  The  former  consti- 
tute what  we  know  as  the  man,  but  all 
his  somatic  cells  are  outgrowths  from 
the  reproductive  cells  and  serve  the 
individual  through  this  short  life.  His 
brain,  muscle,  liver,  stomach,  bones, 
etc.,  are  ephemeral.  His  immortal 


12  Sex  Attraction 

part  is  the  reproductive  cell.  This 
possesses  the  potentiality  of  eternal 
life,  and  it  goes  on  from  generation 
to  generation.  Life  is  continuous. 
The  somatic  cells  constitute  the  tem- 
porary abiding  place  of  the  reproduc- 
tive cells,  and  the  latter  are  influenced 
by  the  former,  more  or  less,  in  each 
generation.  In  this  way  the  character 
of  the  parent  is  transmitted.  Men 
are  mortal,  but  man  is  immortal.  The 
individual  dies,  but  the  race  continues. 
Each  individual  is  a  part  of  the  whole, 
and  the  perfection  of  the  whole  de- 
pends upon  the  soundness  of  the  indi- 
vidual. We  may  have  our  different 
views  concerning  individual  immortal- 
ity; but  as  to  the  continuance  of  the 
race,  there  can  be  no  discussion;  and 
each  generation  has  been,  and  will 
continue  to  be,  what  preceding  gen- 
erations have  made  it.  Even  those 
who  do  not  directly  participate  in  the 
continuance  of  the  race  have  much  to 


Sex  Attraction  13 

do  with  shaping  its  destiny  by  the  in- 
fluence they  have  on  those  of  the  di- 
rect line.  There  is  therefore  no  one 
to  whom  this  is  not  a  matter  of  vital 
concern. 

I  have  spoken  of  the  differentiation 
which  has  led  to  the  development  of 
the  sexes  in  man.  It  may  be  well  to 
inquire  as  to  how  far  this  has  gone 
in  our  species.  How  different  are  men 
and  women?  To  what  extent  has  the 
development  of  sex  affected  the  whole 
structure  I  We  need  not  be  surprised 
if  we  learn  that  the  evolution  of  so  im- 
portant a  function  as  this  has  led  to 
differences  more  or  less  marked  in 
every  part  of  the  body,  and  that  these 
differences  have  touched  the  finest 
and  most  delicate  mechanism  of  life, 
even  the  intellectual  and  moral  being. 
On  this  point  we  can  not  speak  at  pres- 
ent with  absolute  certainty.  This  is  a 
problem  with  which  science  is  at  pres- 
ent busy,  but  we  can  say  that  it  is 


14  Sex  Attraction 

probable  that  delicate,  but  appreciable 
and  even  measurable,  differences  be- 
tween the  male  and  female  exist  in 
every  cell  of  our  bodies.  This  is  a 
matter  which  is  giving  the  educator, 
the  psychologist,  and  the  physician 
much  concern,  and  one  upon  which  no 
one  is  yet  prepared  to  speak  with  ab- 
solute certainty.  While  this  is  true, 
there  are  certain  things  which  seem 
to  be  quite  definitely  demonstrated 
and  upon  which  I  propose  to  touch. 
While  the  sex  function  has  been  devel- 
oped primarily  for  the  purpose  of 
procreation,  it  has  come  to  be  a 
mighty  factor  in  the  development  of 
the  character  and  well-being  of  the  in- 
dividual. No  man  can  escape  the  fact 
that  he  is  male,  and  no  woman  that  she 
is  female.  This  recognition  of  struc- 
tural and  functional  differences  does 
not  imply  inferiority  in  either.  The 
sexual  glands  elaborate  an  internal  se- 
cretion which  permeates  every  tissue, 


Sex  Attraction  15 

modifies  every  function,  and  colors 
our  most  secret  being.  Children  are 
practically  neuter,  but  with  the  devel- 
opment of  the  reproductive  glands, 
the  rate  and  manner  of  growth  change 
according  to  the  sex.  Eemove  these 
glands  before  puberty  and  the  neuter 
state  or  infantilism  persists.  Any 
man  or  woman  may  go  through  life 
with  the  average  health,  doing  good 
work,  either  physical  or  mental,  bear- 
ing himself  honorably  and  treating 
others  justly  and  kindly  without  once 
indulging  in  the  procreative  act.  Ab- 
solute continence  is  compatible  with 
health,  efficiency,  and  happiness,  but 
disease  of  the  sexual  glands  is  incom- 
patible with  any  and  all  of  these.  No 
young  woman  is  under  any  compunc- 
tion to  accept  the  rake.  The  spinster 
state  is  perfectly  respectable  and  is 
compatible  with  a  long,  happy,  and 
useful  life;  while  she  who  weds  the 
young  man  who  has  been  sowing  his 


16  Sex  Attraction 

wild  oats  is  likely  to  go  to  the  operat- 
ing table  within  a  short  time,  and  to 
spend  the  rest  of  her  life  in  regret.  I 
have  touched  upon  this  point  in  order 
to  make  it  plain  that  sexual  health  is 
essential  to  the  well-being  of  the  in- 
dividual, as  well  as  to  the  betterment 
of  the  race. 

The  differentiation  which  has  been 
necessary  in  the  development  of  the 
sexes  in  the  genus  homo  has  made  one 
the  complement  of  the  other.  From 
this,  sex  attraction  results.  By  sex 
attraction  I  mean  the  pleasure  and  the 
mutual  satisfaction  that  come  to  two 
persons  of  opposite  sexes  when 
brought  into  association.  It  may  be 
quite  apart  from  the  function  of  re- 
production. Under  normal  conditions 
the  mother  has  a  warmer  spot  in  her 
heart  for  her  sons  than  for  her  daugh- 
ters, while  with  the  father  this  is  re- 
versed. In  the  children  affection  fol- 
lows like  lines.  The  normal  big 


Sex  Attraction  17 

brother  would  lay  down  his  life  for 
his  sister,  be  she  older  or  younger 
than  he,  while  he  would  be  unwilling 
to  make  so  great  a  sacrifice  for  his 
brother.  Under  normal  conditions 
there  is  much  more  pleasure  experi- 
enced in  rendering  a  service  to  one  of 
the  opposite,  than  to  one  of  the  same, 
sex.  Likewise,  there  is  greater  ap- 
preciation of  a  service  rendered  when 
the  doer  is  of  the  opposite  sex.  Words 
of  approbation  fall  upon  more  eager 
ears  when  they  come  from  the  lips  of 
the  opposite  sex.  This  theme  might 
be  amplified  indefinitely,  but  I  do  not 
think  that  any  one  will  question  the 
all-pervading  influence  of  sex — for 
good  or  ill.  It  follows  us  through  the 
daily  routine  and  becomes  an  impor- 
tant factor  in  every  decision.  It  quick- 
ens our  ambitions,  modifies  and  often 
determines  our  conduct,  and  weaves 
the  delicate  structure  of  our  dreams. 
It  is  a  potent  agent  in  either  direction. 


18  Sex  Attraction 

It  may  fill  the  cup  of  life  with  a  nectar 
fit  for  the  gods,  or  it  may  drop  into  the 
sweet  drink  a  poison  which  destroys 
body,  mind,  and  soul.  It  may  lift  to 
the  highest  heaven  or  it  may  cast  into 
the  deepest  hell. 

We  who  are  engaged  in  the  educa- 
tion of  the  young  should  always  bear 
in  mind  both  the  good  and  the  ill  that 
may  come  to  those  under  our  care 
from  sex  attraction.  We  should  not 
ignore  its  existence,  because  it  is  a 
biologic  function.  It  develops  in  the 
youth  of  both  sexes  at  the  period  of 
adolescence  with  some  degree  of  sud- 
denness, and  they  as  a  rule  are  quite 
unconscious  of  its  significance  and 
wholly  ignorant  of  its  potency,  and  es- 
pecially of  the  harm  it  may  do  them. 
Its  influence  is  widely  different  in  in- 
dividuals. In  those  of  good  ancestry 
and  under  favorable  environment  the 
effects  are  favorable,  and  the  girl  and 
boy  flower  into  womanhood  and  man- 


Sex  Attraction  19 

hood ;  but  in  those  of  defective  parent- 
age or  living  under  untoward  condi- 
tions, the  results  may  be  most  disas- 
trous. The  steps  of  many  a  girl  are 
turned  into  downward  paths  at  this 
period  of  development.  Especially  is 
this  true  of  those  who  are  weak  men- 
tally. Prostitution  is  largely  recruit- 
ed from  those  of  this  class,  and 
thoughtful  educators  are  recognizing 
the  fact  that  many  of  our  schools  are 
not  free  from  these  dangers.  Being 
a  male,  I  am  inclined  to  make  a  special 
plea  for  the  girls.  My  deepest  sym- 
pathy is  with  them  in  a  most  trying 
period  of  their  development,  at  a  time 
when  they  most  need  wise  counsel  and 
help.  The  girl  blooming  into  woman- 
hood feels  this  natural  and  persuasive 
desire  to  attract  those  of  the  opposite 
sex,  and  in  her  ignorance  she  falls  at 
least  a  half  willing  victim  to  the  lust 
of  some  villainous  male.  She  dresses 
and  deports  herself  under  the  influ- 


20  Sex  Attraction 

ence  of  this  potent  and  subconscious 
force,  and  in  doing  so  she  risks  her  all, 
quite  unconscious  of  the  existence  of 
the  pit  into  which  she  is  to  fall.  It 
might  be  said  that  parents  are  to 
blame  for  this  condition.  Mothers 
should  caution  and  protect  their 
daughters.  So  they  should,  but  many 
mothers  are  ignorant,  and  from  a 
sense  of  prudery,  it  is  not  considered 
a  proper  thing  for  even  a  mother  to 
speak  to  her  daughter  about  matters 
pertaining  to  sex.  Moreover,  however 
wise  the  precepts  of  the  home,  there  is 
the  example  set  at  school.  Other  girls 
do  this  and  mother  belongs  to  a  past 
generation.  She  is  not  supposed  to 
know  how  girls  of  the  present  day 
should  deport  themselves.  That  the 
behavior  of  the  girls  in  many  of  our 
high  schools  invites  disaster  can  not 
be  denied.  Unpleasant  facts  have 
bared  themselves  to  the  eyes  of  teach- 
ers and  the  public,  and  a  task  lies  be- 


Sex  Attraction  21 

fore  us  which  we  can  not  shirk.  A 
friend  of  mine,  an  observant  and  intel- 
ligent physician  in  one  of  the  larger 
cities  of  the  Middle  West,  told  me 
some  years  ago  that  the  street  in  front 
of  one  of  the  high  schools  of  his  city 
was  converted  into  a  peacock  alley 
every  noon  hour  when  the  weather 
permitted.  The  young  lady  students 
dressed  to  attract  men  and  deported 
themselves  with  the  plain  intention  of 
inviting  address  from  the  rakes  who 
came  to  see  the  parade.  A  shocking 
condition  of  sexual  degeneracy  came 
to  light  in  the  high  school  of  a  smaller 
city  in  the  Northwest  about  the  same 
time,  and  there  is  undeniable  evidence 
that  this  is  not  the  only  place  where 
such  things  have  occurred.  The  school 
is  not  the  only  place  where  the  impulse 
to  attract  the  opposite  sex  leads  the 
girl  astray;  but  we  are  teachers,  and 
are  especially  interested  in  the  school 
problem.  Before  proceeding  I  wish 


22  Sex  Attraction 

to  state  that  I  am  not  a  pessimist,  and 
I  do  not  wish  to  appear  as  an  alarm- 
ist. I  believe  that  the  world  is  better 
on  the  whole  than  it  has  ever  been, 
and  I  am  aware  of  the  fact  that  in  all 
ages  girls  by  the  thousands  have  gone 
astray,  but  we  want  the  world  to  has- 
ten its  pace  toward  perfection,  and  be- 
cause an  evil  condition  is  as  old  as  the 
world  is  no  reason  that  it  should  con- 
tinue, but  all  the  more  reason  why  we, 
recognizing  it  as  evil,  should  cast  it 
out. 

What  may  be  done  to  save  the 
school  girl  from  the  dangers  of  sex 
attraction?  It  is  well  to  recognize  at 
the  outset  that  the  problem  is  a  com- 
plex one,  and  there  is  no  ready-made 
and  safe  way  of  solving  it.  Those  who 
undertake  to  handle  it  must  be  tactful 
and  resourceful.  Stern  commands 
and  prohibitions  are  likely  to  fall  on 
deaf  ears  or  to  awaken  an  antagonism 
which  surely  means  defeat.  The  ex- 


Sex  Attraction  23 

perience  of  the  past  has  shown  that 
even  locks,  bars,  and  prison  walls  are 
not  effective  means  in  attempts  to 
save  the  silly  girl  who  wishes  to 
throw  herself  into  the  arms  of  some 
rake.  Should  the  parent  be  consulted 
and  warned  ?  The  answer  to  this  must 
be  determined  by  the  individual  case. 
It  is  sad,  but  true,  that  some  mothers 
encourage  their  daughters  in  their  at- 
tempts to  attract  the  opposite  sex. 
They  are  proud  to  have  their  daugh- 
ters admired  and  are  not  inquisitive 
concerning  the  character  of  the  ad- 
mirer. I  think  that  much  may  be 
done,  especially  by  female  teachers,  in 
discouraging  flashy  dressing.  Plain, 
neat,  clean,  inexpensive  dress  best  be- 
comes the  school  girl.  Both  in  dress 
and  in  deportment  the  female  teacher 
should  be  a  model  to  the  girls  under 
her  charge.  I  believe  that  instruction, 
by  the  proper  person,  in  the  funda- 
mental biologic  facts  of  sex  should  be 


24  Sex  Attraction 

given  to  the  girls  in  all  our  high 
schools.  I  doubt  seriously  the  wisdom 
of  attempting  this  in  the  lower  grades. 
When  girls  reach  the  age  of  puberty 
they  should  know  themselves  and  the 
dangers  to  which  they  are  quite  sure 
to  be  exposed.  They  should  know  the 
fundamental  facts  of  anatomy,  phys- 
iology, and  hygiene,  and  the  applica- 
tion of  these  to  themselves.  They 
should  be  instructed  how  to  keep 
themselves  healthy  and  free  from  con- 
tamination. They  should  be  told  that 
the  men  whom  they  are  likely  to  at- 
tract by  artificial  means  are  exactly 
the  ones  whom  they  should  avoid.  Ig- 
norance on  these  points  has  been  tried 
for  centuries,  and  it  has  been  demon- 
strated that  the  results  have  been  dis- 
astrous. Let  us  try  knowledge.  The 
truth,  properly  stated,  can  hurt  no 
one.  Talks  upon  these  subjects  can 
be  given  to  girls  by  either  male  or  fe- 
male teachers  without  embarrassment 


Sex  Attraction  25 

to  either  speaker  or  audience,  and 
with  profit  to  the  latter.  This  state- 
ment is  not  made  on  theoretical 
grounds,  but  it  has  been  tested  in 
our  normal  schools  and  universities. 
There  are  in  this  audience  teachers 
who  have  demonstrated  this.  I  think 
it  best  that  the  lectures  dealing  with 
this  subject  of  sex  should  be  a  part  of 
a  course  in  general  hygiene.  In  my 
lectures  to  the  girls  at  the  university 
I  have  followed  the  following  general 
plan :  The  general  anatomy  of  the  fe- 
male pelvis;  the  location  of  the  ova- 
ries, fallopian  tubes,  uterus,  and  va- 
gina, and  the  function  of  each.  I  have 
dwelt  upon  the  internal  secretion  of 
the  ovaries  and  its  great  influence 
upon  the  health,  development,  and 
well-being  of  the  individual.  I  have 
attempted  to  show  that  healthy  secre- 
tions can  come  only  from  healthy  or- 
gans. Then  I  have  gone  without  hesi- 
tancy into  the  diseases  which  damage 


26  Sex  Attraction 

these  organs.  This  has  been  done  by 
others,  and  by  some  much  better  than 
I  have  done  it.  I  have  never  known  of 
a  girl  bearing  herself  less  modestly  on 
account  of  this  knowledge,  and  many 
have  testified  to  its  value  to  them.  If 
such  instruction  can  be  given  to  the 
girls  in  our  normal  schools  and  uni- 
versities, why  should  it  not  be  given  to 
their  sisters  in  the  high  school?  In- 
deed, this  has  been  done,  and  is  now 
being  done,  in  more  than  one  high 
school  in  this  state.  The  great  major- 
ity of  girls  have  no  education  beyond 
the  high  school.  Some  say  that  the 
trouble  begins  in  the  lower  grades, 
and  if  this  instruction  does  not  reach 
these,  it  fails  in  its  purpose.  I  am 
painfully  aware  of  the  fact  that  there 
is  much  sexual  nastiness  among  both 
girls  and  boys  in  our  ward  schools. 
Every  physician  knows  this,  but  to  my 
mind,  this  is  quite  apart  from  the 
question  of  teaching  sex  hygiene.  It 


Sex  Attraction  27 

is  another  problem,  and  it  is  to  be 
solved  by  stricter  attention  to  the  chil- 
dren especially  in  the  retiring  rooms. 
Parents  also  can  do  much  in  improv- 
ing this  most  undesirable  condition. 
I  do  not  suppose  that  instruction  in 
sex  hygiene  is  going  to  save  all  the 
girls.  There  are  thousands  of  chil- 
dren, even  in  this  country,  growing  up 
under  conditions,  outside  of  their 
school  life,  which  render  it  impossible 
for  them  to  develop  into  good  citizens. 
This  is  quite  as  impossible  as  it  is  for 
tropical  fruits  to  grow  in  arctic  re- 
gions. A  few  years  ago,  in  Ann 
Arbor,  within  a  stone's  throw  of  one 
of  the  university  buildings  there  lived 
a  woman  and  her  two  daughters,  the 
elder  no  more  than  sixteen,  and  all 
three  wTere  prostitutes.  That  like  con- 
ditions exist  elsewhere  there  can  be 
no  reason  to  doubt.  This  family  was 
detected  by  our  efficient  probation 
officer,  who,  unlike  most  of  those  fill- 


28  Sex  Attraction 

ing  this  office,  is  not  blind.  We  boast 
of  our  civilization,  but  there  are  still 
many  among  us  who  would  be  stoned 
to  death  should  they  attempt  to  live 
in  a  tribe  of  savages. 

There  are  sexual  perverts  among 
girls  as  well  as  boys.  The  majority 
of  these  come  from  bad  stock,  are 
weak  intellectually,  belong  to  the 
alarmingly  large  class  of  morons,  and 
constitute  a  menace  to  the  betterment 
of  the  race.  When  bad  environment 
is  added  to  bad  heredity,  girls  of  this 
class  are  well-nigh  incorrigible.  Many 
of  them  have  pretty,  doll-like  faces, 
and  are  highly  attractive  to  the  fool- 
ish and  over-susceptible  of  the  oppo- 
site sex.  Instruction  will  be  largely 
wasted  on  these,  because  they  are  de- 
void of  the  mentality  necessary  to 
receive  it.  Unfortunately  there  are 
some  of  these  in  most  of  our  large 
schools,  and  they  present  a  most  diffi- 
cult problem.  I  believe  that  in  the 


Sex  Attraction  29 

medical  inspection  of  schools,  which 
has  already  demonstrated  its  great 
usefulness,  mental  as  well  as  physical 
tests  should  be  applied  to  all,  and  the 
defective  should  be  assigned  to  special 
schools,  supplied  with  experts  in  deal- 
ing with  delinquents.  This  task 
should  be  assigned  to  most  tactful 
and  experienced  men  and  women,  be- 
cause it  is  liable  to  meet  with  a  storm 
of  protest  which  in  many  instances  is 
sure  to  render  its  execution  impos- 
sible. 

In  the  teaching  of  sex  hygiene  the 
boy  needs  to  be  handled  quite  differ- 
ently from  the  girl.  In  sex  approach 
under  natural  conditions  the  male  is 
the  aggressor.  This  is  physiologic, 
and  it  should  be  understood  by  both 
sexes.  -It  has  been  said  with  bitter- 
ness by  women  that  man  is  ready  to 
defend  a  woman's  virtue  against 
every  other  man  but  himself.]  There 
is  truth  in  this  saying,  and  it  has  a 


30  Sex  Attraction 

physiologic  basis  which  is  often  woe- 
fully abused  by  the  man.  It  is  man's 
nature  to  demand,  and  it  is  woman's 
natural  inclination,  under  certain  con- 
ditions, to  yield.  In  the  sex  relation- 
ship, under  normal  conditions,  the 
male  is  masterful  and  the  woman  de- 
spises the  man  who  is  not.  Failure 
to  understand  and  appreciate  this  fact 
will  rob  the  teaching  of  sex  hygiene  of 
half  its  influence  on  boys.  Boys  should 
be  plainly  told  all  about  the  effects  of 
gonorrhea  and  syphilis,  but  don't  try 
to  frighten  them  with  the  great  injury 
that  may  come  to  them  personally 
from  these  diseases.  To  the  average 
normal  boy  the  element  of  personal 
danger  is  an  incentive  to  find  out  for 
himself.  Appeal  to  his  chivalry.  Tell 
him  that  if  he  acquires  syphilis  he  be- 
comes a  walking  culture  of  most  viru- 
lent organisms,  that  mucous  patches 
will  develop  on  his  tongue  and  cheeks, 
and  that  his  mother  or  sister  can  not 


Sex  Attraction  31 

kiss  him  without  danger  of  infection, 
that  he  poisons  every  cup  from  which 
he  drinks  and  that  he  becomes  a  source 
of  danger  to  those  who  are  dearest  to 
him;  that  he  can  never  love  a  pure 
girl  without  polluting  her  with  a  most 
loathsome  disease,  and  that  he  is  unfit 
for  parenthood  and  ceases  to  be  a  man 
in  any  proper  sense.  Then  go  on  and 
awaken  his  chivalry  for  the  girl  whom 
he  may  seduce  by  surprise;  tell  how 
the  girl  trusts  and  how  unmanly  it  is 
to  betray  a  trust.  I  am  in  the  habit 
of  saying  to  the  boys  in  my  classes: 
"I  have  lectured  to  you  on  heredity. 
I  have  shown  that  you  and  I  are  what 
our  ancestors  have  made  us:  while  I 
have  been  giving  these  talks  each  of 
you  has  been  wondering  what  kind  of 
ancestors  he  has.  Change  your  point 
of  view;  project  yourself  some  years 
into  the  future.  Then  some  boy  will 
be  wondering  what  kind  of  ancestors 
he  had.  He  will  be  thinking  of  you, 


32  Sex  Attraction 

and  it  may  be  that  thirty  or  fifty  years 
from  now  some  young  man  will  be  car- 
ried to  the  insane  asylum  a  hopeless 
and  helpless  paretic  because  you,  his 
father  or  grandfather,  got  drunk  and 
acquired  syphilis."  Boys  who  do  not 
see  the  force  and  justness  of  this  argu- 
ment are  by  nature  bad. 

There  are  boys  who  seem  beyond 
the  reach  of  any  argument.  A  young 
man  entered  this  university  last  fall, 
and  as  he  afterwards  admitted,  went 
fresh  from  the  lectures  on  venereal 
diseases  to  a  house  of  prostitution  in 
Detroit  and  acquired  syphilis.  He 
spent  a  part  of  the  second  semester 
in  University  Hospital  where  he 
served  as  an  object  lesson  in  the  clin- 
ics. The  idea  that  prostitution  should 
be  permitted  in  any  city  or  anywhere 
is  a  relic  of  the  past  of  which  we 
should  free  ourselves.  The  existence 
of  houses  of  prostitution  renders  it  all 
too  easy  for  young  men  to  do  them- 


Sex  Attraction  33 

selves  irreparable  harm.  An  efficient 
and  honest  police  force  can  free  any 
city  from  every  form  of  this  vice. 
That  there  is  an  awakened  conscience 
in  this  matter  is  shown  by  the  enact- 
ment and  enforcement  of  the  Mann 
law,  by  the  attention  now  being  given 
to  the  low  wages  of  girls  and  by  the 
efforts  being  made  in  our  cities  to 
suppress  this  form  of  vice.  What 
would  we  think  of  a  city  which  would 
permit  centers  of  smallpox  infection 
to  exist  within  their  limits  ?  Smallpox 
is  mild  in  its  effects  upon  the  individ- 
ual and  negligible  in  its  disastrous 
and  far-reaching  effect  upon  the  com- 
munity compared  with  the  great  pox, 
syphilis.  The  former  may  scar  the 
faces  of  many  and  kill  a  few,  while 
the  latter  fills  insane  asylums  with  its 
wretched  victims,  scatters  its  virus 
among  the  innocent,  and  blights  fu- 
ture generations  with  its  withering 
curses.  I  have  spoken  of  the  parade 


34  Sex  Attraction 

of  silly  school  girls  on  the  streets  of  a 
western  city,  but  let  me  tell  you  of  a 
condition  which  recently  existed  in  one 
of  our  large  eastern  cities.  This  story 
was  told  me  by  a  physician  resident 
of  that  place.  There  is  a  school  for 
boys  of  from  fourteen  to  sixteen 
years.  This  physician  thought  of 
placing  his  son  in  this  school,  and  pre- 
paratory to  doing  so  he  made  an  in- 
vestigation of  the  conditions  sur- 
rounding it.  He  found  that  prostitutes 
gathered  about  this  school  as  the  hour 
of  closing  approached,  for  the  purpose 
of  captivating  the  boys.  Think  of  the 
painted  harlot  who  waits  at  the  gate 
of  the  school  to  personally  conduct 
the  innocent  boys  through  the  gates 
of  hell.  Think  of  this  condition  and 
ask  yourself  how  far  are  we  yet  from 
true  civilization.  There  is,  so  far  as  I 
know,  but  one  country  in  the  world 
which  makes  legal  provision  for  the 
punishment  of  the  female  seducer,  and 


Sex  Attraction  35 

that  is  the  country  which  we  are 
taught  to  regard  as  the  most  licentious 
— France.  Every  large  city  and  many 
smaller  ones  permit  vampires  to  lure 
unwary  youths  into  gilded  dens  of  in- 
famy. Some  one  should  organize  a 
society  for  the  protection  of  our  sons. 
We  should  deal  with  the  venereal 
diseases  as  we  do  with  other  infec- 
tious diseases.  Those  who  contract 
them  should  be  reported,  as  we  do 
with  smallpox,  and  then  segregated, 
not  in  houses  of  prostitution,  but  in 
hospitals.  I  believe  in  the  segregation 
of  prostitutes  both  male  and  female, 
but  not  in  places  where  the  disease 
may  be  disseminated,  but  where  this 
is  impossible.  Please  do  not  misun- 
derstand me  on  this  point.  I  would 
not  deal  harshly  with  any  unfortunate. 
It  is  not  within  the  province  of  the 
medical  man  to  do  so.  I  would  not 
damn  any  one  for  making  a  mistake, 
especially  a  mistake  dependent  upon 


36  Sex  Attraction 

a  frailty  so  common  to  man  as  this. 
To  contract  a  venereal  disease  is  not 
a  crime ;  it  is  a  misfortune,  a  sad  mis- 
fortune, and  one  which  unfortunately 
is  not  always  remediable.  To  infect 
another  with  a  venereal  disease  is  a 
crime,  a  moral  if  not  a  legal  one.  In 
this  state  it  is  a  statutory  crime,  and 
one  open  to  serious  punishment.  We 
have  been  harsh  and  unreasonable  in 
our  judgments  at  least  with  unfortu- 
nates of  this  class.  We  have  said  no 
one  contracts  these  diseases  without 
committing  a  deadly  sin  and  he  de- 
serves whatever  punishment  his  trans- 
gression may  bring.  We  forget  the 
thousands  of  innocent  wives  who  be- 
come infected.  We  forget  the  tens  of 
thousands  of  crippled  children  who 
come  into  the  world  under  a  fearful 
handicap.  We  refuse  to  instruct  our 
children  as  to  the  dangers  that  lie  in 
wait  for  them.  The  campaign  against 
the  venereal  diseases  must  be  a  hu- 


Sex  Attraction  37 

mane  and  just  one.  We  must  not  set 
ourselves  as  "  holier  than  thou,"  and 
treat  the  erring  daughter  or  the  way- 
ward son  as  outcasts.  Had  I  a 
daughter  and  she  wanted  to  marry  a 
man  whom  I  knew  to  be  syphilitic,  I 
would  investigate  the  young  man.  If 
he  were  a  confirmed  roue,  I  would,  of 
course,  never  consent.  Had  he  made 
a  mistake  through  ignorance  and  was 
otherwise  worthy,  I  would  say,  when 
you  are  thoroughly  cured,  I  shall  give 
my  consent.  Some  of  my  professional 
colleagues  have  denounced  my  views 
on  this  point  as  immoral,  but  I  have 
practiced  medicine  long  enough  to 
know  that  in  the  majority  of  instances, 
not  in  all,  the  venereal  diseases  are 
curable  and  constitute  no  permanent 
bar  to  parenthood.  Besides,  this  is 
the  common  experience  of  all  who 
have  had  to  deal  with  these  diseases. 
The  treatment  is  long  and  the  mental 
torture  is  great,  greater  than  any  one 


38  Sex  Attraction 

save  the  physician  and  the  victim  can 
imagine.  Provided  that  a  complete 
and  unquestionable  cure  can  be  se- 
cured, and  science  can  now  accurately 
determine  this,  the  question  of  per- 
mitting marriage  then  becomes 
strictly  a  moral  one,  and  I  could  never 
find  it  within  my  heart  to  lastingly 
condemn  any  one  for  a  mistake.  I  do 
not  believe  in  unpardonable  sins. 

It  is  said  by  some  that  the  teaching 
of  sex  hygiene  can  have  no  effect  upon 
the  young,  because  love  is  never 
reasonable  and  consists  wholly  of  sen- 
timent and  feeling.  What  is  true  in 
this  statement  is  largely  due  to  the 
cloak  of  ignorance  with  which  we  have 
clothed  the  sex  instinct.  Did  the 
young  woman  know  the  fearful  pollu- 
tion which  the  rake  brings  with  him 
and  seeks  to  transmit  to  her,  she 
would  see  all  of  this  and  would  from 
the  moment  of  introduction  loathe 
him,  notwithstanding  his  handsome 


Sex  Attraction  39 

face,  manly  form,  and  deferential 
bearing.  Eemove  the  double  standard 
of  virtue  as  applied  to  men  and  women 
and  the  young  woman  would  look  upon 
the  young  man  who  has  been  sowing 
his  wild  oats  as  she  now  regards  those 
of  her  own  sex  whom  he  has  de- 
bauched. Our  sons  and  daughters  are 
what  their  ancestors,  including  our- 
selves, have  made  them,  modified  more 
or  less  by  their  environment,  for 
which  we  are  responsible.  They  see 
through  our  eyes  or  those  which  we 
have  given  them,  and  if  we  place 
riches  and  social  position  above  clean 
living,  they  are  likely  to  do  the  same. 
Besides,  our  children  are  what  we  are, 
not  what  we  pretend  to  be.  Clothing 
the  ass  in  the  lion's  skin  does  not 
affect  the  progeny  of  the  former.  The 
devil  may  wear  the  livery  of  heaven, 
but  his  sons  are  devils  still.  The  lib- 
ertine may  hide  his  vices,  but  he  must 
not  swear  at  fate  when  his  children 


40  Sex  Attraction 

are  not  equally  successful  in  conceal- 
ing them. 

Possibly  I  am  placing  too  much 
emphasis  on  heredity  and  too  little 
on  environment.  I  am  ready  to  plead 
guilty  to  the  latter.  Environment  is  a 
most  potent  factor  in  the  sex  question. 
Proper  association  of  the  sexes  is 
probably  the  strongest  force  in  the  up- 
lift of  the  race.  I  desire  that  my  sons 
should  be  much  in  the  company  of 
women.  Who  can  measure  the  power 
for  good  that  woman  has  over  man? 
This  is  quite  apart  from  the  repro- 
ductive function.  The  admiration  of 
a  good  man  can  hurt  no  woman, 
neither  is  this  any  reason  why  the  ad- 
miration of  a  good  man  should  be 
limited  to  one  woman,  or  vice  versa. 
Good  comradeship  between  the  sexes 
is  beneficial  to  both.  I  feel  quite  sure 
that  coeducation,  with  its  disadvan- 
tages which  are  plainly  evident,  is 
better  than  the  exclusive  form,  but 


Sex  Attraction  41 

this  is  too  big  a  theme  to  go  into  now. 

Among  certain  classes  sex  associa- 
tion is  so  intimate  that  ill  naturally, 
and  we  might  say,  necessarily,  results. 
This  is  a  matter  of  sanitary  housing, 
which  has  not  received  the  degree  of 
attention  it  deserves. 

Sex  attraction,  like  all  other  biologic 
functions,  has  its  abnormal  phases 
and  manifestations.  All  these  are  in- 
teresting, and  some  are  serious  in 
their  consequences.  In  some  people 
it  seems  wholly  wanting.  This  is  of 
no  racial  importance,  and  affects  the 
life  of  the  individual  only,  or  at  most 
concerns  only  a  few  intimate  associ- 
ates. A  much  more  serious  abnormal- 
ity is  sex  antagonism.  This  is  a  dis- 
eased state,  and  until  recently  it  has 
been  observed  only  in  sporadic  form. 
There  is  occasionally  a  woman-hating 
man,  or  a  man-hating  woman.  Ee- 
cently  this  disease  has  become  a  most 
alarming  epidemic  in  England,  greatly 


42  Sex  Attraction 

to  the  inconvenience  of  the  normal  of 
both  sexes.  It  is  to  be  hoped  that 
this  disease  may  not  become  pan- 
demic. It  certainly  should  be  kept 
out  of  this  country,  even  if  it  be  neces- 
sary to  resort  to  strict  quarantine. 

There  is  another  perversion  of  the 
function  of  sex  attraction  and  this  is 
known  as  sex-infatuation  or  intoxica- 
tion. It  is  an  acute,  self -limited  dis- 
ease, which  runs  a  short  but  violent 
course.  The  disease  is  characterized 
by  illusions  and  hallucinations  in 
which  the  victim  talks  about  his  affin- 
ity or  soul  mate,  and  other  jargon 
unintelligible  to  those  in  the  normal 
state. 

Sex-infatuation  is  a  mirage  to 
which  the  parties  hasten  madly,  to 
find  themselves  overwhelmed  by  a 
dust  storm. 

Sex  attraction  is  the  fountain  of 
perpetual  youth,  long  sought  by  the 
individual,  long  possessed  by  the  race. 


Sex  Attraction  43 

The  drinking  of  its  waters  endows  the 
race  with  life  eternal,  renews  each 
succeeding  generation,  and  will  ulti- 
mately develop  the  better  man. 

I  wish  to  emphasize  the  fact  that 
while  the  central  purpose  in  the  de- 
velopment of  sex  attraction  is  repro- 
duction, this  is  by  no  means  all. 
Before  there  is  reproduction  there 
should  be  something  worthy  of  being 
produced.  The  silly  moron  girl  who 
will  entwine  her  affections  about  the 
first  man  who  will  permit  it  is  not  the 
type  which  should  be  reproduced, 
neither  is  the  vicious,  immoral  boy. 
Our  efforts  should  be  directed  to  the 
extinction  of  both  of  these.  .He  who 
wastes  his  substance  in  riotous  use  of 
the  reproductive  function,  whether  it 
be  outside  or  inside  of  the  legal  en- 
actments, procreates  a  kind  which 
does  not  bless,  but  curses  the  race. 
Said  a  childless  man  to  me  a  few  days 


44  Sex  Attraction 

ago:  "  John  Doe's  manly  sons  fill  me 
with  regret  that  I  am  not  a  father, 
while  Eichard  Boe's  worthless  prog- 
eny banish  all  this  regret." 


14  DAY  USE 

RETURN  TO  DESK  FROM  WHICH  BORROWED 

LOAN  DEPT. 

This  book  is  due  on  the  last  date  stamped  below,  or 

on  the  date  to  which  renewed. 
Renewed  books  are  subject  to  immediate  recall. 


REZSltfHaD 

UL9    '64-7  PM 

^l^-fo^B                        UnivS^f-SuSmia 

(E45o5slO)476B                                     Berkeley 

